People had called for the company to add women to its board ahead of its initial public offering of stock in mid-May.

In announcing the move Monday, Facebook Inc. didn’t say whether that came in response to calls to add women. But as the second to Zuckerberg, she was a logical choice.

Sandberg has been largely responsible for building Facebook’s advertising business. She is also often serves as Facebook’s public face, appearing at conferences and important meetings, while Zuckerberg often prefers to stay in the background and focus on Facebook’s products.